Means for throwing switches.



I. M. HUVTCHINS. MEANS FOR THROWING SWITCHES.

APPLICATION FILED IAN. 3l. ISIS- 1 186,790. Patented June 13, 1916.

3 SHEETS-SHEET I.

THE soLuMBxA PLANOGRAPH C0,. WASHINGTON. D. c.

I. IVI. HUTCHINS. y MEANS FOR TIIROWING SWITCHES.

Patentd June 13, 1916.

` APPLICATION FILED IAN. 31| |916. 1,186,790.

3 -SHETS-SHEET 2.

THB coLMBm PLANDGRAPH co., WASHINGTON. D. c.

1L M. HUTCHINS.

MEANS FOR THROWING SWITCHES. APPLICATION FILED IAN. 31. 1916.

Patente June 13, 1916.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

T il:

STATES JOHN M. HUTGHINS, OF OKLAI-IOMA, OKLAHOMA, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO PATRICK J'. MADIGAN, OF OKLAHOMA, OKLAHOMA.

MEANS FOR THROV/ING SWITCHES.

Liset/eo.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented J une 13, 1916.

n Application led January 31, 1916. Serial No. 75,272.

To @ZZ whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN M. HU'roHiNs, a citizen of the United States, residing at Oklahoma, in the county of Oklahoma and State of Oklahoma, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Means and Throwing Switches, of which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings.

An object ofjthe invention is to provide a more convenient means for throwing switches in rail-way tracks.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the ensuing description. f

The accompanying drawings show one embodiment of the invention ink practical form.

Figure l is a right-hand side elevation of the front end of a street car and a portion of track, with the improvements applied thereto. Fig. 2 is a plan view, partly in section, of the parts shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is an enlarged view in the same direction as Fig. 1, showing an assemblage of some of the parts. Fig. 4 is a still larger plan view of afvalve mechanism which is shown at the point indicated by the arrow 4 in Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a sectional view taken on the line 5 5 of Fig. 4.- `Fig.` 6 is a. sectional view on the same scale as Figs. 4 and 5, taken on the line 6--6 of Fig. 3. Fig. 7 is an elevation view of a valve, taken in the same direction as Fig. 3.

Referring to the several figures, in all of which like4 characters of reference designate like parts, the inventor provides a tapered tool 10 adapted to be forced down between a main rail 11 and a switch-tongue 12 to split said rail andswitch-tongue apart, and provides improved meansl for supporting this tool and controlling its movements. In providing this supporting and controlling means, a pressure cylinder 13 is arranged in vertical position and carried by a supporting crane 14 whichis pivoted to the front of the car body 15 on a vertical axis. This crane 14 may comprise a vertical pivot-shaft 16 which is journaled in suitable bearings 17 and 18 on the car body 15, and brace-arms 19, 20, and 21 which project forward and connect said pivot-shaft and the'cylinder 13 into a rigid supporting frame.

A long piston 22 is tted in the cylinder 13 and projects out the lower end thereof, the extreme lower end 0f this piston carrying the splitting tool 10; and this piston is held normally upward out of operative position by a tension spring 23 which is hitched at the top of the interior of said cylinder and at the bottom of the bore 24 of the tubular upper end of said piston. Means later described are provided for forcing the piston 22 downward at will. In further arrangement, means are provided for swinging the crane 14' from one side of the track to the other. In providing this means, a second pressure cylinder 25 is secured to the under side of the car platform 26 and provided with a piston of well known construction which does not show in the drawings, the rod 27 of this piston passing out the end of said cylinder and terminating in a toothed rack 28 which is in permanent mesh with a gear-segment 29 on the lower end of the pivot-shaft 16. By admitting compressed air to one end of the cylinder 25 or the other, the action of the piston rod 27 on the gear-segment 31' of the pivot-shaft 16 will enable the car driver to swing the crane 14 to the desired position for operation of the tool 10. Compressed air for moving the piston in the cylinder 25 may be'taken from the train-pipe 30, which is a well known part of the brake equipment of modern cars; and to enable the car driver to control said air a valve mechanism 31 is supported by a bracket 32 from the lower side of the car platform 26. As best shown in Fig. 6, this valve mechanism 31 comprisesfa valve-casing BSin which is a rotatable valve 34. This valve 34 is of well'known construction and arrangement and is so ported that by its manipulation the air supplied from the train-pipe to the valve-casing 33 through the pipe 35 may he alternately directed to the ends of the cylinder 25 through the two pipes 36 and 37, the cylinder exhausting through a port 38 ofsaid valve-casing. 'Io move the valve 34, it is provided with a stem 39 which extends up into the drivers compartment of the carv and is provided with a handle 40; the upper end of this stem being journaled in a suitable supportingv bracket 4l.

In arranging to force the piston 22 and `tool 10 downward, the stem 39 of the valve 34 is made tubular and is supplied with air through a small port 42 in said valve. The 110 upper endof the stein 39 terminates in a valve-casing 43 which is ittedy with'a valve 44, best shown in Figs. 4 and 5; the handle which is swung in a horizontal plane to move the lower valve 34 being attached to the valveV 44 and adapted to be swung in a vertical plane to move thelatter valve. A llexible pipe 45, leads from the valve-casing 43 to the upper arm` 21 of the crane 14, and said arm is made tubular fromthe joining` end of said pipe 45 on down to the bore 46 of the cylinder 1'3. The valve 44 is of well known construction andarrangement, and so ported that when the handle 40 is swung downward Vthe air Jfrom the stem 35) is directed intothe upper end of the cylinder 13 toV drive the piston 22 and tool'lO downward; and when the handle 40is raised back to normal position the air exhausts out. through a port 47 of thevalve-casing 43 and allows the spring 23fto raise the piston -22 and tool 10 back up to normal position.

In manipulating the valve 34 -by swinging the handle'40 in a horizontal plane, the car driver'rnay swing the crane V14 to bring ther tool 10 over one rail-11 or the other with lthe same ease and. accuracy that he could if the handle were attached directly to the pivot-shaft 16; and after bringing the cylinder 13 tothe right place, the swinging of the handle 40 downward to move the caught.

valve 44 is the natural movement of said handle toforce the piston 22 and tool10A downwardto throw the switch. Y Y

To protect the piston 22 from injury in case the tool10 becomes wedged or caught in the track before the car is fully stopped, the tool is yieldablyconnected to the piston and adapted to swing backward when In arranging the .yieldable connection of the tool 10, the lowerend'of the `piston 22 is flanged outward, as at 48, thus forming of the tubular lower end of Ythe piston 2 2 a wide base against which the widely lianged .Y

upperV end 49 of the tool vis normally seated. A strong tension spring 50 in the bore 51 holdsrthetool 10 upward in seating contact with said'piston and allows said Vtool-to yield when resisted by an obstruction or` caughtV in the track, a substantially cone- Vshaped centering-pin 52 ony theupper end of the tool .engaging thebore Vof the piston to hold the upper part of said tool againstV lateral displacement.V

Having thus described theinvention, Iv

' claim 1. :In Vcombination with aca-r,a Atool car-` rierd by the cark and j Vadapted toibethrust Copis'of 'thiislpate'ndt `mayA beY olitain'cd for downward to split track rails, and meansV 3. In combination with a car, a supportingY crane pivoted to the car on a vertical axis, means operable by compresse-d air for swinging said crane, a tool carried by the crane and adaptedrto acty on track rails, andineans operable by compressed air for causing vsaid tool to act. Y 4 4. In combination with a car, a pressure cylinder carried by ther car and having a` ypiston,'a tool carried bythe piston to act o-na. track rail, the connection between the piston and `tool being yieldable, and means for supplying compressedv air to the fcylinder. Y Y

5. In combination with a car, a supporting craneV pivoted to the car on a vertical axis, a vertical pressure cylinder carried by the crane and having a piston, a tool carried by the piston to act on a track rail, means for supplying compressed air to the cylinder to force the tool to act, and yieldable means in the cylinder tor drawing the tool away from the rail when the air pressure 1sV removed.

6. In combination with a car, a crane vcarried vby the car and pivoted thereto on a vertical axis, a cylinder carried by the crane and having a piston, a tool carried by the piston to act ona track rail, a gear segment operatively engaged Vwith the crane, a second cylinder carried vkby the car and having-a piston roth-,saidrod'having Vrackand-pin engagement with the gear segment ot' the crane, a valve arranged to control af supply of' compressed airto the second cylinderl and having a stennsaid Vstem-carrying a second valve adapted to control a supy ply'of air lto the first-named cylinder, said second valve having a handle by which it may bemoved to direct- :the air to the iirst- Vnamed cylinder andby which the stein carrying said/second valve may be operated to move the valve which directs the air yto the Y second cylinder, and a source ot compressed 'l f 'Il I-IflllVoGEL.

vecentsieali, byY addressing the Commissioner of Patents, Washingtonyllcl- 

